We know inflammation is the body’s inherent way of self-defense. This is the process by which your body rids itself of harmful foreign substances that manage to enter the blood stream, such as viruses and bacteria. Every time there is such “unauthorized” entry, the body deploys the white blood cells to fight these elements. The white cells identify these “outsiders” and literally engulf each one of them before destroying them. While they do so, there are changes that take place within the body such as fever, swelling, redness, high blood pressure and the like. Once the “work” is done and the intruders are destroyed, the inflammation goes down and the body resumes its normal functions.

As you can see, inflammation is the response to infection and it helps your body to heal. Ordinarily, once the infection is gone the inflammation, too should be completely reversed. However, when your immune system malfunctions for various reasons, your body would experience a low-grade chronic inflammation state, which would have white cells turn on healthy cells, tissues, organs or bones resulting in disease and accelerated aging signs. A prolonged low-grade chronic inflammation would have you suffer from heart problems, constant infections, high blood pressure, acid reflux, gastritis, osteoporosis, cancer, diabetes, depression, Alzheimer’s, acne, skin problems, aging signs, arthritis and lower back pain among others.

This chronic inflammation state is the result of a dysfunctional immune system. In most cases, the main cause for this is the over-production of inflammatory chemicals, which in turn is due to wrong dietary habits, smoking, chronic stress, lack of exercise and being overweight. Diet is one of key triggers for inflammation. How? When you follow a diet that is based mostly on fast food and processed and refined food products, you help in the generation of free radicals in the blood stream. These free radicals can be compared with anti-socials, which go on rampage within the body attacking all the healthy issues they can. This action causes injury, which triggers inflammation and sets up a vicious cycle. The same processed foods that help in the creation of free radicals, also suppress the immune system of the body causing it to weaken.